MINUTES
STATE
OF
The Henderson County
Board of Commissioners met for a regularly scheduled meeting at
Those present were: Chairman Bill Moyer, Vice-Chairman
Also present were: Planning
Director
Absent was: Deputy Clerk to the Board Terry Wilson
CALL TO ORDER/WELCOME
Chairman Moyer called
the meeting to order and welcomed all in attendance.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Chairman Moyer led the
Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag.
INVOCATION
Commissioner Williams
gave the invocation.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the National Guard was unable to attend and had asked the Board to
reschedule the signing ceremony recognizing them for their contribution.
INFORMAL PUBLIC COMMENTS
1.
Eva Ritchey - Ms. Ritchey began “Is there no one here that
will save this place?” Seven Falls, The
Glen, Bearwallow; we have been waiting 20 years for land use policies to
preserve the beauty that people came here for and we still don’t have it. When she had opened up the paper and saw the
remarks by Mr. Pearce where he was understandably upset, the people were
accusing the Planning Board of taking money for their good treatment of
developers. She thought he was
right. She doesn’t think the Board has
ever taken money but they’ve taken lunch and that is the problem, its
access. The majority of members who have
been appointed to the Planning Board have close ties to the development and
building community. They take their
orders as much from the North Carolina Builders Association in
2.
Ned Doyle - Mr. Doyle was in agreement with Ms.
Ritchey. Mr. Doyle is not a big fan of
the development pattern that is emerging in
3.
Charles Brown - Mr. Brown expressed the same opinion as Ms.
Ritchey and Mr. Doyle. An offer had been
made on his property and they had considered what they would take
beforehand. They would have to leave and
move away from their home of 13 years.
The amount of money offered did not even match up with the tax
value. He does not feel that they should
be able to get a grandfather clause in so that they can do as they see fit
without anybody saying what they do. The
people that live on the land should have a say so on what is going on not them
and their donations trying to buy a way in.
4.
Darlene Brown – Ms. Brown realizes that construction and
building is the way that things go but she hates to see the farm land
disappear. She feels that if we’re going
to allow people to come into our county and buy up our land to put whatever on
it they should be held to a standard.
They should not be given any leeway at all and should be made to do it
right. The problem is that things have
not been done right in this county and so you have houses that are sliding off
of hillsides where they should never have been built and you have wells going
dry.
5.
Tommy Mills - Mr. Mills had a list of properties that
6.
Carroll Gosnell - Mr. Gosnell lives in the Pleasant Grove
area. What he sees going on with this
property he feels is a travesty and is just not right. If Henderson County Board of Commissioners
wonders why Etowah is discussing incorporation, this is one of the very
reasons. Hopefully they can control it
if the Board of Commissioners can’t. He
questioned if the upcoming land code was so restricted that
7.
Angela Fernandini – Ms. Fernandini reminded the Board that she
had filed an appeal for the Phase I Development Plan that the Planning Board
passed on June 21st and amongst the paperwork in the request for
Board action the developer says that he is going to follow certain storm water
rules or other permits governed by DENR.
She stated that as of yet that the developer had not done so. She found it funny that they propose this in
the request for Board action but don’t now.
If there is property that they do not have a contract on that’s in their
master plan they can’t seek vested rights for those properties. She would like the Board of Commissioners to
consider the vested rights of the community.
She is fourth generation Etowah as are many other people and these
people deserve vested rights. Under the
project narrative it says that this development will have a sports bar on
site. This is a dry county and you can’t
buy alcohol in Etowah and she really doesn’t think the values in the community
would support a development having 900 homes and being able to have access to
alcohol and then drive off that mountain and come into town. They also proposed a kids activity
center. One thing mentioned during
master plan approval was that the developments going up in Etowah, specifically
this one and Biltmore Farms would not be affecting our school system. If they are not going to be affecting our
school system, then why are they having a kid’s activity center on site? They also keep saying that they will build a
fire station but the plan only shows a shell.
She questioned if the county would be responsible for everything else
including equipment, training, etc.
8.
Richard Freudenberger - Mr. Freudenberger spoke to the proposed
development agreement with
9.
Bruce Gosnell – Mr. Gosnell lives in the area where
10.
Marijane Pell – Ms. Pell spoke against vested rights. Seven Falls has repeatedly violated laws that
govern housing developments and the water quality of our local streams. There are four water violations out against
them according to Kevin Barnett and she heard that they did not get the proper
permits for burning and every homeowner needs permits for burning. These people are supposed to be professionals
and yet their excuse is accidents happen.
With all of the money they have at their disposal and experts they hire,
there should be no accidents. If they
cannot be trusted to take care of simple things like permits, how can they be
trusted with anything else; like reframing from using septic tanks after two
years. Now they are seeking vested rights
which we will give them which will also give them probably septic tanks in the
four future developments and water wells as well. She believed that the Commissioners are
charged with the safety and well being of their constituents. If you truly want to act on that you will say
to this developer, fine you can go ahead but first not until the new roads are
in place, the newer lines are in place, the water lines are in place, and the
fire house is built complete with equipment needed. Ms. Pell asked the Commissioners to allow her
to put up a petition in the county building and county libraries asking the
people of
Chairman Moyer stated
that Ms. Pell had already discussed this with the
County Manager Steve
Wyatt explained that Ms. Pell had filled out the appropriate form, which came
in after the agenda deadline and they had put this item on the tentative agenda
for the next meeting for the Board’s consideration.
Chairman Moyer responded
that the answer was no for today.
DISCUSSION/ADJUSTMENT OF AGENDA
Chairman Moyer had no changes
to the agenda.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion to approve the adoption
of the agenda. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
CONSENT AGENDA
Chairman Moyer requested
pulling item “G – Approval of Vested Rights Order V-2007-04” from the agenda to
be discussed for clarification. He recognized the motion for approval with the
exception of Item G.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion to approve the adoption
of the consent agenda with the exception of Item G. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Item G – Approval of Vested Rights Order V-2007-04
Chairman Moyer
questioned the wording on the last page of the order in regards to outdoor
storage. The wording reflected unlimited
outdoor storage but with a minimum of 5000 feet.
County Planning Director
Anthony Starr explained that under the new Land Development Code with the
zoning that this property would be permitted to have outdoor storage less than
5000 feet therefore, the ordinance was establishing that they would have rights
beyond what the new code would say.
Chairman Moyer requested
clarification in the order to read that they could have what is admitted by the
code plus these 5000.
Chairman Moyer made the motion to approve the Vested Rights
Order V-2007-04 with the above noted change.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
The rest of the consent
agenda is as follows:
Minutes
Draft minutes were
presented for the Board’s review and approval for the following meetings:
May 16, 2007 – Regularly Scheduled Meeting
May 21, 2007 – Special Called Meeting
May 24 2007 – Special Called Meeting
June 4, 2007 – Regularly Scheduled Meeting
June 7, 2007 – Special Called Meeting
Tax Collector’s Report
Terry F. Lyda, Henderson
County Tax Collector, had provided the Tax Collector’s Report dated June 22,
2007, for the Board’s review and consent approval. Collections information was included through June
21st for the 2006 bills mailed out on August 18th, as well as
vehicle bills.
Annual Bills G01 Only:
2006 Total Charge: $49,390,710.20
Payments & Releases: 48,390,710.20
Unpaid Taxes: 1,103,111.08
Percentage collected:
97.77%
Motor Vehicle Bills G01
Only:
2006 Total Charge: $4,943,871.00
Payments & Releases: 4,267,071.21
Unpaid Taxes: 676,540.00
Percentage collected:
86.32%
Fire Districts All
Bills:
2006 Total Charge: $5,277,633.50
Payments & Releases: 5,077,457.51
Unpaid Taxes: 200,132.31
Percentage collected:
96.29%
County Financial Report/Cash Balance Report – May, 2007
These two reports were
presented for the Board’s review and consent approval.
Non-Departmental costs
include insurance premiums paid to date for Property and Liability insurance
coverage and Worker’s Compensation costs.
These costs are being allocated out to all departments on a pro rata
basis during the fiscal year.
The YTD deficit in the
Emergency 911 Communications Fund is due to the purchase of new technology and
equipment during the first quarter that was budgeted in the current fiscal year
and paid for from unreserved fund balance of $66,952 appropriated in this Fund.
The YTD deficit in the
Crisis Housing Assistance Program, the CDBG Scattered Site Housing Program and
the Public Transit Program is temporary due to timing differences in the
expenditure of funds and the subsequent requisition of Federal and State grant
funds and local fare box revenues to reimburse program expenditures.
The YTD deficit in the
Mills River Elementary School Project includes architectural fees that have
been paid on the project to date that will be reimbursed from new school
financing debt issued in FY2008.
The YTD deficit in the
Balfour Automotive Science Training Center Project is being paid from sales tax
refund proceeds which have accumulated in the School Capital Projects Fund from
various school capital projects. This
project was completed at the end of May.
The YTD deficit in the
Solid Waste Landfill Fund is due to construction expenditures incurred on the
new transfer station project. The total
cost of this project is being paid from $1.8 million of unreserved fund balance
appropriated in this Fund.
Henderson County Public Schools Financial Report –May, 2007
This May report was
presented for the Board’s review and consent approval.
This report was
presented for the Board’s review and consent approval.
Text Amendment to Nuisance Ordinance
The text amendment was suggested to clarify Section
126-2.04 regarding outdoor storage. The
text amendment arose from discussions by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. In these discussions, the ZBOA was unclear as
to whether the first provision under the Outdoor Storage in regards to amount
of outdoor storage and the location of this storage could be applied to
business storage which was discussed in the following clause. The proposed text amendment clarifies that
the first section applies only to residences and that there are no restrictions
on business outdoor storage as long as the storage is related to the business.
If the Board is so
inclined, the following motion was suggested:
I move that the Board adopt the proposed Text Amendment to
the Section 126-2.04 of the
The Henderson County
Sheriff’s Office on behalf of the
This is the first step
in a phase-in process which will eventually move the daily rate to $60 per
inmate. The total increase to $60 per
inmate, per day will occur over a two-year period.
If the Board is so
inclined, the following motion was suggested:
I move the Board allow Sheriff Rick Davis and Captain Greg
Cochran of the
Non-Profit Performance Agreements
Subsequent to the
approval of the FY 2007-08 Budget, staff had distributed the funding agreements
to the non-profit agencies receiving County allocations. Staff will be including signed funding
agreements on the Board’s consent as they are received from the agencies.
If the Board is so
inclined, the following motion was suggested:
I move the Board authorize the Chairman to execute the
funding agreements as presented and, in doing so, authorize the release of the
first of the aforementioned agencies’ quarterly allotments.
Award Bid – Emergency Water Shed Protection Project
Two bids were received
with the low bid from Hendersonville Equipment Rental and Sales, Inc. at
$55,565 base bid, contingency of $2,778.25 for a total bid of $58,343.25. The high bid was at a base bid of $61,000,
contingency at $3,050 for a total of $64,050 from Cody-Herve Construction. The proposed work is to address stream bank
stabilization along a portion of Clear Creek at
If the Board is so
inclined, the following motion was suggested:
I move the Board approve the bid from Hendersonville
Equipment Rental and Sales, Inc. for the Don Warren Site Emergency Watershed
Protection Project in the amount of $58,343.25, and authorize the
NOMINATIONS
Notification of Vacancies
The Board was notified
of the following vacancies which will appear for nominations on the next
agenda:
1.
Adequate Public
Facilities Task Force Charter – Chair vacancy
2.
Nominations
Chairman Moyer reminded
the Board of the following vacancies and opened the floor to nominations.
1.
Commissioner McGrady withdrew the nomination from the previous
meeting for David Arnold. Chairman Moyer
made the motion to accept Tom Orr, nominated at the last meeting, by acclamation.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
2.
Child Fatality
Prevention Team – 1 vac.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
3.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
4.
Juvenile Crime
Prevention Council – 7 vac.
Commissioner Young
nominated Christy Bridges for position #25.
Chairman Moyer made the motion to
accept Christy Bridges to position #25 by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
5.
Library Board of
Trustees –1 vac.
Candler Willis and
Morton Lazarus had been nominated at the last meeting. The Board was polled with one vote each with
the following results:
|
Chuck McGrady |
Mark Williams |
Bill Moyer |
Charles Messer |
Larry Young |
|
1. Morton Lazarus |
1. Candler Willis |
1. Candler Willis |
1. Candler Willis |
1. Candler Willis |
Candler Willis was
appointed to position #5 with a majority of the votes.
6.
Nursing/Adult Care Home
Community Advisory Committee – 3 vac.
There were no nominations at this time so this
item was rolled to the next meeting.
7.
Planning for Older
Adults Block Grant Advisory Committee - 2 vac.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
8.
Senior Volunteer
Services Advisory Council – 1 vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
Moseley Architects Presentation
Chairman Moyer
introduced a representative for Moseley Architects, Jimmy Wilhide, who made a
presentation on environmental issues and associated costs related to school
design and construction.
Jimmy Wilhide stated
that he was present on behalf of the School Board to talk about “LEED” schools
and what this meant concerning
The standard for schools
is through the U.S. Green Building Council and it’s called “LEED” (Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design).
They have developed the criteria specifically for schools and that criterion
is used to measure the things that are implemented into the building, as well
as, the site and other areas.
The benefits of LEED
schools are health, environmental and financial. Studied green schools use an average of 33%
less energy than conventionally designed schools. A big part of LEED is commissioning. A large upfront number that basically is used
for additional inspectors and additional commissioners that test the building
and make sure that the building is meeting the specs, is meeting the drawings,
that the mechanical units are running as designed and engineered so that the
building is working as efficiently as possible.
Chairman Moyer asked
about the fee charged for testing the system and making sure they are working
right and making sure the plans are being followed. Isn’t that what is in the normal
architectural fee?
Mr. Wilhide stated that
this was part of it, yes. They do have a
site visits. This takes it a step above
and beyond.
Chairman McGrady
commented that the Board had visited a school in
Chairman Moyer requested
a copy of the cost estimate savings for
County Manager Steve
Wyatt informed the Board that there were a couple of meetings in the next two
weeks and that the Board would need this time to study the material. One of the issues that the Commissioners and
staff had was the construction or design bidding construction timetable. He questioned if they reviewed the information
for the next two weeks, what affect will that have on Moseley’s time bid
construction timeline?
Mr. Wilhide responded
that this wasn’t something that could be done as an “add alternate.” It needs to be incorporated as soon as
possible. He would strive to get the
information to the Board immediately.
Chairman Moyer questioned
the drop dead date for when the Commissioners had to give Moseley Architects an
answer?”
Mr. Wyatt asked if the
two weeks prior to the next meeting would affect the design bid construction
timeline with a negative impact.
Mr. Wilhide said “We
will make it work if you do the two weeks.”
Commissioner Williams
asked how the maintenance differed with a LEED school to a non-LEED school, as
far as, cost was concerned.
Mr. Wilhide did not have
an answer but theorized that the new equipment being used should have fewer
problems, therefore requiring less maintenance.
Chairman Moyer asked Mr.
Wilhide “If you take the total estimate of what it would cost to construct
these two schools and added $714,000 to get the LEED certification would there
be additional construction costs to accomplish what the LEED certification
requires”.
Mr. Wilhide stated that
there would not be additional costs with the basic LEED certification; not
silver, gold, etc.
Discussion followed.
Dana Elementary Phase II A&E fees
School Board Chairman
Irvin Bazzle stated that in November the Board of Commissioners approved the
architectural fees for the School Board to go forward with the final phase of
Chairman Moyer stated
the school board took the other estimates out before and then they got the much
higher figure and then they value engineered it using that $57,000 of
architecture fees. He inquired what
assurance the school board had that they were anywhere close to the $2.5
million.
Mr. Bazzle responded
that the school board took the plans that they had, which included the gym with
the wall taken out which was their initial plan. The initial plan also included the sloped
roof on the 5th grade building with HVAC. The cost estimates were done which showed
them the number coming above the $2.5 million.
They then told the architect to give them different designs removing
these two items. They have no assurances
that they will hit budget but they feel they have a better shot with the
numbers and the way they have crunched them on the alternates that are going
out.
Chairman Moyer surmised
that based on the value, the school board thought that they could come in at
$2.5 million but they did not have the bids to back it up. He inquired if this
was the same group that did
Mr. Bazzle stated no it
was the group that did Clear Creek.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion that the Board
authorize staff to pay the additional $57,000 in A&E fees from the total
construction project of $2.5 million dollars.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Award Bid
Informal Bids were requested
by Architects PBC&L for the renovation work planned for the
County Engineer Marcus
Jones stated that staff was requesting the Board to approve B. Allen
Construction for renovation work for the 6th Avenue Clubhouse
Rehabilitation project in the amount of $56,320.00 and authorize the County
Manager to execute contracts.
Commissioner Young made the motion that the Board approve B.
Allen Construction for renovation work for the
Waterline Extensions
Planning Director
Anthony Starr reminded the Board that they had wished to discuss this
particular item and that waterline extensions typically are approved by the
Board. Mr. Starr distributed maps of
each waterline extension to the Board.
He informed the Board that none of the projects being presented included
any County tax dollars and all cost would be born either by the developer or
perhaps the City of
Pinnacle Falls – Off Site
The
Chairman Moyer stated
that the sheet used for the waterline extensions; one of the key items has
always been that it is within our comprehensive plan and Mr. Starr had noted
that this was not. Chairman Moyer
questioned why the Board would be considering this extension. The Board should either follow their regular
plan or change the plan. This extension
request is not in the transition area.
Commissioner McGrady
noted that the water was coming completely out of one watershed, the
Mr. Starr said that the
sewage is being treated on site, so it would not come back to the basin. The city or any operator of a public water
supply is not required to have any kind of approval from the state for those
unless we exceed two (2) million gallons per day.
Commissioner McGrady
questioned as to why the Board was receiving this request after millions of
dollars had already spent as opposed to asking the Board earlier on in the
stage.
Mr. Starr responded that
he felt that there was a problem with the process that is being used. He and the City Utilities Director had been
discussing this issue of trying to develop a better system and how they could move
forward through this process.
Discussion Followed.
Commissioner McGrady
requested that the developer of
The Developer responded
that they looked from inside the property.
They did a geological survey of the property and were advised by an
engineer from
Commissioner Young
wanted to know if this would affect the density of the development.
The Developer responded
that it would not affect the density.
They were at 147 homes and 355 acres and that is where they will
remain. This will also enhance the
cities ability to provide fire protection and pressure back to Kenmure. They are only using a very minimal amount of
water projected for 147 homes. That’s
60,000 gallons of water per day they are projecting to use.
Commissioner McGrady
asked the Developer if the Board did not approve the extension what other
option was available.
The Developer responded
that he no other options at this point.
Commissioner Young made the motion that the Board approve
the water line extension for
Summit Springs (On Site)
Commissioner McGrady
stated that in respect to Summit Springs it obviously is in a rural
agricultural area and under the comprehensive plan the Board would not normally
approve an extension of utilities into this area.
Anthony Starr responded
that the basis of Summit Springs is that it would not likely be served with public
utilities.
Commissioner Williams made the motion that the Board approve
the water line extension for Summit Springs.
The vote passed 4 to 1 with Chairman Moyer voting nay.
BREAK
A five minutes break was
taken to change video tapes.
Edneyville Inn Subdivision (Water Utility Extension)
Commissioner McGrady
stated that in respect to Edneyville Inn it is in the rural transition area and
this is something they would do on a case by case basis.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion that the Board approve
Edneyville Inn Subdivision water line extension. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Water Line Extension –
Planning Director
Anthony Starr asked the Board to refer to the map handout. On the map the existing water line on Highway
64,
Chairman Moyer inquired
that this would have been 1 lot per 3 acres and now it is 1 lot per a little over
an acre; which would more than double the density.
Anthony Starr and the
developer answered that this was correct.
The developer Scott
Shirley and co-developer Dean Anderson explained that they are in pretty much
the same situation as Mr. Ball. He had
used the same geologist and received the same feed back. When they did their exploratory drilling,
thinking that they may be in a central community system to serve a number of
the people from having to dig so deep, they couldn’t find the volume that they
needed. They have spent well over $100,000
with the city and engineering and spent a year waiting for the state.
Commissioner McGrady
requested to hear from the city representative or engineer.
City Utilities Director
Lee Smith came to the podium to address questions from the Commissioners.
Commissioner McGrady
commented that if they continue to expand water lines, this would increase
development. He wanted to know if this
was approved would it be real easy to get a whole range of other water
extensions to this area, and what plans, if any, did the city have to put water
into these areas.
Lee Smith responded that
the city was not attending the water storage facility for growth. That facility is in our latest distribution
system analysis. Their intention was not
development. Their intention was to have
a reliable water supply and storage facility on that side of their system. This would open up the option of additional
extensions in the future.
County Manager Steve
Wyatt asked what size lines the city was looking at for the 41.6?
Lee Smith responded that
the line to the tank would be 16. The
line on Highway 64 actually reduces at
County Manager Steve
Wyatt asked the location of the tank site.
Lee Smith responded that
it would be on
County Manager Steve
Wyatt stated that he had received calls from people in the area who were told
that they live along that road but they would not be able to tap into that
waterline.
Lee Smith responded that
that is not on the city side of that system.
The portion of this project that city was going to be putting in anyway
will be open for anyone to tap onto. The
portion that is going to be a little more restricted is going to be the
pressure side going from the tank through three pump stations up to the Grand
Highlands Facility, which is being paid for by the developer. This is a 6 inch line and you are not looking
at a lot of capacity or additional capacity for additional growth off of that
line. This is not a densely populated
road so there will be places where people can tie on but because of the
tremendous elevation difference there will be a lot of pressure in parts of
those segments from pump station to pump station.
County Manager Steve
Wyatt asked that in their planning process were the issues of capacity or
pressure what they were trying to tackle prior to this development.
Lee Smith responded
mostly pressure. They also have no
storage facilities on this side of I-26.
Gerton Fire Department
Fire Chief Jay Alley stated that with the addition of 320 homes in the Grand
Highlands Subdivision, it would in fact almost double the number of homes his
department would be protecting. They are
now a Class 6 Fire Department. With the
road density and the housing density and without these hydrants and without a
satellite station on
Commissioner Messer made the motion that the Board approve
the water line extension for Grand Highlands at
Commissioner McGrady
spoke to the motion that this was a difficult situation for the Board to find
themselves in. He did not feel that the
County was the insurer of water to all the people who make investments in
subdivisions and then it don’t work out right and they need to provide
water. He understood that the developer
here is paying for this water to go out there but his concern is not with that
but with the possible urbanization of the area in the future.
Mark Cathey, with Civil
Design Concepts, for the consultant for Grand Highland at Bearwallow informed
the Board that the City of
The vote failed 2 to 3 with Chairman Moyer, Commissioner
McGrady and Commissioner Williams voting nay.
Consideration of the draft development agreement
for Seven Falls Golf and River Club
Planning Director Anthony
Starr stated that the developer for
·
The
developer requested that the County enter into an agreement to establish vested
rights.
·
State
law gives Counties permission to enter into such an agreement (GS 153A-349.1).
·
The
project includes 1,400 acres, 875 homes, and an Arnold Palmer Golf Course in
Etowah off
·
The
developer indicates the project will have a tax base value of $1.2 Billon at
build out.
·
The
developer wishes to obtain vested rights for 4-unit residential buildings and
some commercial uses. The agreement will
give vested rights for all of the project but these two points are the main
reason for the agreement in addition to the extended time of vested rights.
·
The
developer agrees to construct 48,000 feet (9+ miles) of sidewalk and walking
trails.
·
The
developer agrees to comply with North Carolina Phase II Post-construction storm
water control requirements.
·
The
developer requests vested rights for 20 years.
·
The
developer agrees to construct a new fire station to county specifications and
donate the land for the station to the County.
Building plans used by Etowah Fire Department for a previously built
sub-station will be the building design.
·
The
project will use City water and community sewer (not septic tanks).
·
The
developer agrees to convey all sewer infrastructure to the County for $1 should
the County decide to establish a county operated sewer system for the
area. Until such time the system will be
owned by the developer/home owner’s association.
·
The
developer agrees to provide land for a water storage tank for the City of
·
The
developer proposes to re-align
Based on the improvements
agreed to by the developer, the fact that the project will likely proceed with
or without this agreement, and the overall positive impact of including the
options in the agreement that are not otherwise required by law or county
ordinance, Planning Staff recommends approval of the agreement. The developer proposes to construct $13.2
million in infrastructure and improvements as part of this project.
If the Board wishes to
enter into such an agreement, a public hearing is required by state law. Once the public hearing is held the Board may
adopt the agreement. This process will
allow the County and the developer to work out any differences prior to holding
a hearing. Once the hearing is held
additional changes to the agreement may be made to reflect any concerns of the
public or Board. If this option does not
work out the developer may use the Vested Rights Ordinance to seek approval.
Chairman Moyer felt that
it would be a mistake to grant a vested right for 20 years or anything close to
it. He did not think that they would
gain much out of getting this as they can do it anyway. There is a lot going on out in this area and
he would oppose.
Chairman Moyer made the motion that the Board rejects the agreement
for
Commissioner McGrady was
in support of the motion. He found it
laughable that they were looking at vested rights of twenty years. He did not
want to be a party to further facilitating development in the Etowah area.
Commissioner Young was
in support of the motion. He didn’t see how the project could be finished in
five years, he would suggest maybe ten years.
Commissioner Williams
was in support of the motion and also felt that twenty years was excessive. His opinion was that the ten year or less
range was validated for vested rights.
Anthony Starr informed
the Board that at the last meeting the Planning Board had amended their
approval to allow a city water system.
An Attorney for the
developer, Jason Pelz was concerned that the Board would take action without
the presence of Mr. Devany.
Improvement Guarantee Application for
Chairman Moyer stated
that this would normally have been on consent agenda however he had a concern
with the master plan approval. There
were some conditions attached to it and in his understanding they had not been
met and he is concerned about moving ahead with Phase I and getting improvement
guarantee if they have outstanding conditions under the master plan approval
that have not been complied with.
Anthony Starr informed
the Board that the Planning Board did approve the Phase I Development Plan last
week. The conditions that were still
outstanding, as he understood them, were the issue of access to Pleasant Grove
Church Road with the road realignment and access to the cemetery for people who
have right to get into that. Both of
those issues are not within the scope of the Phase I Development Plan so the Planning
Board, because of this reason, decided that those issues as a condition of the
master plan approval did not have to be addressed for the approval of the Phase
I Development Plan. The Planning Board
did not have any authority under the current subdivision ordinance to consider
any state or federal law violations in regards to environmental issues. Under state law we cannot issue building
permits for violation of state rules but we cannot deny subdivision rules
without having a prevision to that effect in our subdivision ordinance.
Discussion followed.
William Lapsley,
consulting engineer and agent for the developer stated that the issue is with
one existing cemetery within the master plan.
To the best of his knowledge the cemetery is extremely small and there
is no platted public access to the cemetery today. The developer has proposed through the master
plan to locate a platted roadway that will go right by the cemetery. It is the intent of the developer and is
stated numerous times both with the master plan and Phase I level.
Angela Fernandini stated
that in regards to the cemeteries, four have been found on this site. There was a newspaper article about a month
prior that stated that two cemeteries were found in the Follies which will be
part of this development and access to these cemeteries has not been addressed.
Commissioner Williams made the motion that the Board of
Commissioners find and conclude that the request for improvement guarantee
complies with the provisions of the Subdivision Ordinance and is approved. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
County Manager Steve
Wyatt discussed Medicaid. He had spent
two hours in a meeting Saturday discussing strategy on Medicaid. The legislature has adopted an interim
budget, a continuing resolution that funded state government for the month of
July but not for the other 11 months.
The issue was that they could not come to an agreement on Medicaid and
basically a phase out of the County share of Medicaid. There are several proposals that are still
alive and active and we have been asked to contact our legislatures tomorrow to
remind them of how important dealing with this issue is. It’s believed that the next week or 10 days
is critical in that there is still momentum, but often frustration takes the
place of momentum and the desire to get out of
IMPORTANT DATES
The Board reviewed the
calendar and discussed the following:
Chairman Moyer stated
that there would be a 4th of July parade on
Reschedule August 6th meeting date and cancel
August 15th Meeting
Chairman Moyer stated
that in respect to the August meetings, discussion had been held and the
recommendation was to reschedule the August 6th meeting, canceling
the August 15th meeting and having the August meeting on the 13th
at 5:30.
Chairman Moyer made the motion that the Board cancel the August
15th meeting and reschedule the August 6th meeting to
August 13 at 5:30 in the Board of Commissioners’ Conference Room. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Noise Ordinance Amendments
Chairman Moyer noted
that when this was last discussed the Board took action to take a look at the
draft, re-circulate it and then set up a public hearing to get public input.
Chairman Moyer made the motion that the Board reschedules
the Noise Ordinance Amendment to the next meeting. All voted in favor and the motion
carried.
Set Public Hearing on
Set workshops on Land Development Code – tentative dates
July 10 & September 11 at 7:00
Commissioner McGrady made the motion that the Board set the
workshops on the Land Development Code for July 31st and September
11 at 7:00 P.M. Commissioner Messer had
a conflict with July 31st. Commissioner McGrady made the motion to set
the workshops on the Land Development Code for August 2 and September 11 at
7:00 P.M. in the Board of Commissioners’ Conference Room and further moved to
set the public hearing on the Land Development Code for August 30 at 7:00 P.M.
in the Bo Thomas Auditorium at
Set Public Hearing on Land Development Code – tentative date
August 30
See motion above.
CANE CREEK WATER & SEWER DISTRICT – no
business
CLOSED SESSION
Commissioner McGrady made the motion that the Board go into
closed session pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11 (a)(4) to discuss matters relating
to the location or expansion of industries or other businesses in the area
served by the public body and he further moved that the Board go into closed
session pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11 (a)(6) to discuss issues concerning personnel. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
ADJOURN
Commissioner McGrady made the motion to adjourn the
meeting. All voted in favor and the
motion carried.
Attest:
Terry Wilson, Deputy
Clerk to the Board
William L. Moyer, Chairman